ORYGINALNA NOWA zafoliowana, wydana w formie digipaku przez Black Lotus Records w 2006 roku. Styl : Power-Heavy Metal

Winston: Being a guitar player that worked with and for a very varied selection of bands and musicians it is obvious getting influenced by them. Joshua Craig worked with members of Kiss, Fear Factory, Coolio, Whitesnake, Stuck Mojo and Cypress Hill to drop a few names that are all far apart from each other. All those influences led to Craig creating an instrumental album called ‘Modes Of Alienation’ released under the band name The Alien Blakk.

The style jumps in an different direction per song, showing all of his skills that way. Heavy and technical in ‘Rephilhate’ (Meshuggah-like), acoustics playing in ‘For Max’ and Vai/Satriani like licks in ‘Sol Amente’ and these are the first three songs! There’s also some country picking with ‘Twin, Twang Twung’, Meshuggah drops by again with ‘The Thing’ and there the calm and easy acoustic ‘The Audition’. It is all played very well, with the help of ex-Megadeth bassist Dave Ellefson and Flotsam & Jetsam drummer Craig Nielsen the bass and drumsduties are professionally and well handled but the variations and differences between the songs are too much. ‘Modes Of Alienation’ can be seen as a compilation album you get with the better music magazines at the bookstore (Rock Hard – Rock Tribune), but also as a kind of professional audition by Joshua Craig. He may have succeeded in that already because at the time of this review he is consideration to become the new guitar player in Guns ‘n Roses. If he will get that job he never will make an album like this again is my guess.

Tracklist:

1. Replihate

2. For Max

3. Sol Amente

4. Twin, Twang, Twung

5. A Question

6. The Things

7. In The Name

8. The Audition

9. Self

10. Black Art